Chapter 445 - 420: The Tragic Love Between Human and Dragon a Thousand Years Ago

On a bustling street, the scholars crossed a bluestone arch bridge still slick with a dusting of snow.

They strolled at a leisurely pace, soon arriving at a lake embankment blanketed in silver.

The daylight glinted off the snow as people ambled by. Icy branches, adorned with bright red festival ornaments, created a scene where cold beauty and understated elegance converged in a grand celebration of the Mortal World. It was the perfect time to draw lessons from the past and spin a moving tale.

The scholars were completely enthralled by Brother Zhou’s tale. Song Ciwan, following at a distance, admired the scenery as she listened in.

She heard Brother Zhou continue, "Though the Dragon Race are part of the Demon Race, their relationship with our Human Race isn’t bad. The Mortal World depends on bountiful harvests, so people often make offerings to the Dragon Gods and pray for gentle rains and favorable winds.

The Dragon Race performs Cloud Formation and Rainfall to protect the land. In return, the Incense and Candlelight they receive from the Human Race aids their Cultivation. This is a matter of great mutual benefit. It was true a thousand years ago, and it remains true today."

This was true enough, and the scholars nodded in agreement. "That’s how it should be. While there’s some minor friction now and then, that’s hardly surprising given the differences between our two races. His Majesty himself has granted titles to the Dragon Gods. On the whole, the relationship between the Human Race and the Dragon Race is fundamentally sound."

"Exactly," said Brother Zhou. "That’s why when Immortal Venerable Mo and the Dragon Maiden Ao Yun fell in love, it was initially looked upon favorably by both races. The Dragon Race even showed signs of being willing to form a marriage alliance.

After all, one was a princess of the Dragon Race, a True Dragon’s Daughter, while the other was number one on the Ten Thousand Spirits Celestial Pride List and the leading disciple of the Kunshan Sect. They were a perfect match—a true golden couple!

There were even rumors at the time that if Immortal Venerable Mo and the Dragon Maiden were to wed, the Kunshan Sect would form a marriage alliance with the Dragon Race. They would then work together to forge an entirely new Immortal Land within the Nine Provinces, casting out all Evil Demons. The Human Race and the Dragon Race would then share the Nine Provinces Universe."

These words were nothing short of shocking.

The scholars were all stunned into silence. Someone sucked in a sharp breath and stammered, "Th-that... That’s about the Sects ruling the... Mmph!"

Someone clapped a hand over his mouth. The scholars exchanged panicked glances, their faces filled with alarm.

"What nonsense are you spouting!" someone snapped angrily.

The scholar whose mouth had been covered lowered his head in embarrassment.

But even though he had been cut off, the unspoken part of his sentence had been made perfectly clear.

Clearly, he had been about to say: the Kunshan Sect wanted to rule the world!

The statement itself wasn’t hard to understand. The reason the scholars considered it a slip of the tongue was simply that this was no longer the era of the Sects. This was the era of the Immortal Dynasty!

Rule the world through the Sects? Who would dare say such a thing? Who would dare even mention it?

Hadn’t most of the great masters and Immortal Masters from the Sects taken up positions in the Imperial Court?

A thousand years ago in the Nine Provinces, the Kunshan Sect was said to reign supreme. But today, in the Great Zhou World, there are one hundred and eight Upper Sects.

But don’t think that more Upper Sects meant their combined power could challenge the Court. That wasn’t the case at all! In fact, the more Sects there were, the stronger the Court’s hold became.

In a way, the Court had become the biggest Sect of them all.

All the other scattered Minor Sects had to obey the Court’s directives, offering tribute in the form of either wealth or talent—or, more often than not, both. In return, they received various credentials and resources from the Court.

Song Ciwan didn’t have a deep understanding of the Court’s structure, but after her conversations with Yin Xunyi and the Beichen Sword Immortal, she could combine that information with her prior knowledge to make some educated guesses.

’Sometimes, you don’t need to know everything about a subject to grasp the essentials.’

’You can sketch out the general shape of things from clues and deductions. Even if it’s not perfectly detailed or has some errors, as long as the broad strokes are right, you’re generally not far off the mark.’

The scholars remained shaken for a moment, but Brother Zhou simply laughed it off. "No need to be so nervous, everyone," he said. "This is all ancient history from a thousand years ago. The world was in chaos back then, and the people suffered terribly. If not for the founding of the Great Zhou, how could the Nine Provinces enjoy the prosperous era we have today?

This is a truth that everyone understands. By discussing the past, we learn about the present. In fact, it only underscores how hard-won our current prosperity is. Wouldn’t you all agree?"

At his words, the other scholars visibly relaxed. They all voiced their agreement, saying Brother Zhou’s point was well-made.

Then they all cupped their fists in salute, expressing their reverence for the Court and His Majesty from afar. Only after all that fuss did Brother Zhou continue his story.

Only Song Ciwan remained preoccupied. ’What’s the difference between a world ruled by Sects and one ruled by an Immortal Dynasty?’ she mused, while also recalling the name of the Dragon Maiden, Ao Yun.

She hadn’t forgotten that on the night of the Third Princess’s wedding feast, Dragon Maiden Ao Yun had been there, attending the banquet!

Listening to Brother Zhou’s tale now felt like more than just hearing a story; it had already connected to her reality.

A strange, wonderful feeling rippled through her heart.

Brother Zhou continued, "Unfortunately, the unexpected always happens. Later, Immortal Venerable Mo and Princess Ao Yun went to cleanse the Valley of Thousand Sorrows together, hoping to rescue the people who had been abducted by the Corpse Demon there. But the Corpse Demon was exceedingly powerful. Immortal Venerable Mo couldn’t defeat it alone, and Princess Ao Yun had to intervene.

In the end, though the Corpse Demon was vanquished, Princess Ao Yun was beaten back into her true form! The Dragon Race was enraged by this, declaring that Princess Ao Yun’s loss of Cultivation and reversion to her dragon body were all due to Immortal Venerable Mo’s inadequate skills.

Princess Ao Yun was taken back by the Dragon Race to be saved, and Immortal Venerable Mo was recalled by the Kunshan Sect for punishment to appease the dragons’ fury. For the next century, Princess Ao Yun remained in seclusion with the Dragon Race to recover, while Immortal Venerable Mo never again descended the mountain to vanquish demons.

He remained in meditative seclusion on Kunshan for a century and gradually fell from the Ten Thousand Spirits Celestial Pride List. After a hundred years, the name of Immortal Venerable Mo was all but forgotten by the world."

His tone had turned melancholic, and the scholars fell silent for a moment.

Finally, someone asked, "Brother Zhou, what happened next?"

"Later," Brother Zhou said, "a major incident occurred on the East Coast. As it happened, a princess of the Dragon Race, unable to endure the agony of her Transformation, attacked an East Sea Fishing Village, causing hundreds of casualties among the people there!"

One of the scholars immediately caught the implication. "Ah!" he exclaimed. "Brother Zhou, the princess who attacked the East Sea Fishing Village... it wasn’t Princess Ao Yun, was it?"

"It was," Brother Zhou confirmed.

This simple confirmation once again plunged the scholars into silence.

After a moment, one of them spoke. "Princess Ao Yun used to vanquish demons alongside Immortal Venerable Mo, saving people from dire straits. Who would have thought that a hundred years later, she would become an Evil Demon preying on the common folk herself?"

Another scholar immediately countered, "Well, it’s hard to control one’s mind during Transformation. Princess Ao Yun probably didn’t do it on purpose, did she? For an unintentional mistake, perhaps she shouldn’t be held culpable."

"How could she not be culpable? Did all those people die for nothing?"

The scholars began to argue, but no one could convince the others.

Perhaps the question simply had no easy answer. Everyone had their own perspective, and none of them could be called definitively wrong.

Brother Zhou cut in. "Gentlemen, let’s not debate this for now. As for what happened next... would you all still like to hear it?"